# Kong Gateway vs Lathe

> Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | Kong Gateway | Lathe |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 82/100 ✓ | 52/100 |
| Rank in category | #1 of 39 in API Gateway | #7 of 30 in Education |
| GitHub stars | 44 319 ✓ | 1 708 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +129 ✓ | +0 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 3 | 6 ✓ |
| Latest release | 3.9.4 · 12 Oct 2026 ✓ | v0.5.0 · 20 Jul 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate | Easy ✓ |
| Official Docker image | No | No |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Main language | Lua | Go |

## Which one should you pick?

Kong Gateway scores 82/100 against 52/100 for Lathe, so it is the safer default.

Lathe ships more often: 6 stable releases in the past year, against 3 for Kong Gateway.

If you want the quickest setup, Lathe is easier to run; Kong Gateway needs more configuration.

Kong Gateway is growing faster right now (+129 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Kong Gateway](https://selfhost.directory/project/kong-gateway) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/kong-gateway.md)
- [Lathe](https://selfhost.directory/project/lathe) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/lathe.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/kong-gateway-vs-lathe